She is thirty-nine, he is forty-one. same blue shirt with an M on their chest and incredible stories to tell. IERI (Yesterday) Annemiek Van Vleuten in Belgium e Alejandro Valverde in Spain they made the Saturday of the Movistar TeamThey both won in sprints. She, a climber, in the classic of the first Flemish walls: the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, already conquered in 2020. He, at his 136th victory, leading a stage with three final climbs and a summit finish on the Gran Camino.
Selection on the Muur
After Muur, in the three-man breakaway that had been going strong for a few kilometers, Annemiek Van Vleuten thought it would be better for her to arrive alone so as not to be beaten in the sprint.
The women's Omloop Het Nieuwsblad race was a tense affair from the start. First came a breakaway of six, with Carbonari (Valcar) and Tomasi (UAE Team ADQ), which reached 4 minutes and was restarted at 40 by the active player. Then the attack of four players with a higher specific weight, with Reusser, Van Djik, Henderson and Sofia Bertizzolo's next attempt. Finally, Annemiek Van Vleuten's forcing on the Muur, with Vollering alone to hold the wheels, while Lotte Kopecky chased angrily and alone.
Bosberg is not enough
It would have all been decided on Bosberg and then, if necessary, in a sprint, even if in the two-man sprint the Movistar athlete admitted that she didn't feel confident. Yet, despite her push on the final wall, Demi Vollering remained there.
«The Bosberg was my last chance to go away alone – Van Vleuten said in the winner's press conference – but I was surprised that only one of them could stay with meI spoke to Vollering at the end, but she didn't want to make any substitutions because she had two teammates behind her.
“It was hard for me, but I thought, ‘Keep pedaling.’ Throughout my career I have tried not to get frustrated by things I can't control., but to accept the situation and make the best of it."
Kamikaze curve
In reality, Vollering was traveling with one thought in his head. Win to dedicate the victory to Amy PietrersAfter the podium she said how much she is missed in the team in everything they do and it would have been nice to be able to give her the victory. But Annemiek Van Vleuten didn't know that and even if he had known, things probably wouldn't have changed.
"I know that on paper Vollering is faster than me," he continues, "but I also know that I get faster after a difficult race. I thought I'd surprise her and I entered the penultimate corner like a kamikaze, my only chance to get to the front of the roundaboutIt turned out to be a 600-meter sprint. She got away from me, but I still had some strength to give and I won."
And now in Spain…
We pass into Spain, almost on the border with Portugal, along one of the most beautiful stretches of the Camino de Santiago, from which the race takes its name. About 1.700 kilometers southwest of Ninove, on the same day but on the roads of Galicia, in a small mountain village called Luintra, Alejandro Valverde has won the queen stage of the Gran Camino, beating Michael Woods and Ivan Sosa, who this year joins Movistar, in the sprint, with the first pursuers 51 seconds behind.
Not a foregone conclusion, given that Jakob Fuglsang also took part in the selection process on the Alto da Moura, then leaving the way open for his teammate Woods. And at that point, in the clash between… old men (41 years old for Valverde, 35 for Woods), the Murcian class prevailedToday the race will be played out in the time trial that will cover the final 7 kilometers of the Camino Francés.
Happiness Valverde
Valverde, who had started the season by admitting to feeling strange running with the retirement deadline at the end of the season, he seemed over the moon.
«I'm very happy – he said – it was fantastic, we always had the race under control. We started to win the stage, then you can do it or notThe opponents were strong, but everything worked out well for us. I didn't know the last climbs and they were incredibly difficult, especially at the beginning.. Sosa did a great job, then I knew I was faster than Woods and Ivan launched me phenomenally. And tomorrow (today, ed.), it will be what God wants. It will be a good time trial, not flat at allWe'll see how I can recover."
Next Saturday the two lions of Movistar, 80 years between them, they will both meet again at Strade Bianche, both with good chances of victory. Valverde finished third twice, in 2014 and 2015. Van Vleuten won in 2019 and 2020. On the streets of Siena, the Movistar Team will have two strong cards to play.
